Happiness Lost was already cold. Her eyes were open, staring at me. I put her down and ran towards Matiuallah. I was so happy when I realized he was still alive. I hugged him. Suddenly, he stopped crying and I felt something cold and wet in my hand. I saw his belly ripped open and all his intestines coming out. I understood that he was dead just like Zakia. I cried and cried and cried! I was screaming and running around. After that, I cannot remember what happened.” The disappearance of Allah Dad radically altered the life of Afghani. Soon after, an endless cycle of trouble and suffering began. Looking everywhere for her husband, she did not manage to find him. Later, she lost her father, a brother and her father-in-law. As she became increasingly helpless and with rising violence in Kabul, she eventually migrated to Peshawar. Along with her brother and two young children, she walked all the way to Jaji and Parachinar and finally reached Peshawar. However, in Peshawar she could not afford the cost of living and shortly after took her children and returned to Afghanistan, where she eventually settled in Shamali, north of the capital Kabul. In Shamali, she worked as vintager. Knowing that she was a widow, all the men stared at her in inappropriate ways. But Afghani was strong enough to resist the patriarchal structure of society and despite the mounting challenges, raised her two children on her own. Finally, one of the commanders in the area forced her to marry him. After two years of marriage, the commander was killed and she remained alone with what by then had become three children. Since then Afghani has done everything in her power to raise her children. She is now approximately fifty-five years old and has lost the strength to continue struggling for a better life. More than thirty years after the death of Allah Dad, no sign of joy and happiness is visible in her tenacious face. A world of untold stories are archived in her decrepit body. The Memory Box Initiative: Seeking to Break the Cycle of Violence and Tragedy in Afghanistan The Memory Box Initiative: Seeking to Break the Cycle of Violence and Tragedy in Afghanistan 9 Until today, Basira cannot talk much about that tragic moment. When she speaks about Zakia and Matiuallah, the color of her face changes. Tears flow uncontrollably from her eyes. Sometimes, she cries so much that her headscarf is soaking wet. She says,“I feel that I have a deep wound in my chest. A wound that continuously spits out blood. I’m sure one day I will drown in my own blood.” The violence in the aftermath of the 1978 Saur revolution has forever destroyed Afghani’s happiness. Before the coup she lived a joyful life with her husband Allah Dad. Everything was going well. The result of their happy marriage were two healthy children, a boy and a girl. Afghani was proud of her husband, who was known to be well educated and intellectual. They lived in comfortable economic conditions. They were pleased with their lives and did not feel that anyone could ever take away their satisfaction and happiness. But suddenly everything changed. Allah Dad was arrested by the government and taken to Puli Charkhi prison. He was never convicted of any crime and until today no one knows what happened to him. 10